Aspiration
by girlwithglasses1886
Summary: Troy doesn't need her. He doesn't miss her. Aspiration. A feeling of longing for something or someone. TroyxSharpay
1. Chapter 1

When Troy Bolton bumped into Sharpay Evans on a Monday morning one day in their senior year of high school, he mentally prepared himself for her loud screams, a flirty wink and wave or one of her bear hugs. He whispers an apology to his ears and his arms. What? He never knew if it was the last time he'll ever hear again or use his arms ever again. Instead, all he got was a bright smile and a 'Good morning, Troy'.

What? The basketball ball captain blinked once. Twice. Was he dreaming? Of course. It has to be. In real life, Sharpay would be over dramatic. In real life, she'll be flirting with him although she must know that he's with Gabby. In real life, she would always give him a bear hug. She would be screaming. Yep. He should wake up anytime now. Anytime now.

"Hello? Earth to Troy? You there?" The blonde girl waved a hand in front of his face as he soon snapped back to reality.

"Hey, Sharpay. I'm fine, please stop waving." Sharpay did as she was told and dropped her hand back to her side. Troy looked at her suspiciously. "Are you sure you're all right, Sharpay? You're not sick or something?"

Sharpay shook her head, her blonde hair swishing back and forth. "No, I'm fine. Life's fabulous and I'm not sick. But thank you for asking, though." She flashed him a bright smile as the first period bell rang.

"I'll see you later then, Troy..." Troy saw her cheeks flush pink as she whispered something hardly audible. He shook that idea out of his head.

"Yeah, I'll see you around...Sharpay." He watched as her small figure took long strides from across the hallway, her pink heels clicking and clacking ad she walked. He stood there, watching her disappear until his best friend, Chad, slapped his back.

"Dude, Troy! Hurry up, man! We're gonna be late!" Troy only nodded dumbly as he followed Chad to their first period class. There, he took a seat next to his girlfriend, the ever- oh-so-smart Gabriella Montez. As he sat down, he could hear bits of the conversation she and Taylor were talking.

"Gabs, did you hear, Sharpay likes someone!" Taylor nearly screamed enthusiastically.

"Really, who? Is it Zeke? I feel so bad if it's not him. You know hard he tries." Gabby said sympathetically.

Kelsi popped in. "Nope! It's-" She was cut off as the bell rang, reminding students that class started.

"All right, good morning, class. Please take out your books and turn to page-" Troy stopped listening to his first period teacher as he twirled on his pencil and pretended to copy down notes. He didn't think about what the teacher was talking about, instead his mind was about Sharpay. Why was she so different today? And...who does she like?

End of Chapter 1.

Note: I am SO SO SO SO SO sorry that I deleted this fic and am redoing this again! At first, I ran out of ideas, so I gave up on it, but I decided to see how it'll go along, so I'm back with it again. I'm sorry. Please review this and if this gets a good amount of reviews, I guess I'll continue?


	2. Chapter 2

"GABRIELLA MONTEZ, DON'T YOU DARE!"

All eyes from those in the cafeteria were on a breathless, laughing, brunette and an angry, never before seen, blonde, who was chasing the laughing girl. Gabriella ran around the cafeteria, running around different tables, before she collapsed and sat down next to her boyfriend. Sharpay reached them, breathing heavily, green eyes snapping.

"Whoa! Looks like the Ice Queen could actually run!" Chad snickered, which earns him a couple of chuckles from some other guys on the basketball team.

"Shut it, Danforth. I'd like to see you run more than a foot in basketball. Ryan, quit slouching! We can't win the lead if you're always slouching! Taylor, I finished the essay for French! Oh. Hey, Troy." Sharpay greeted him last after snapping at Chad, complaining at Ryan and proudly boasted to Taylor about the French they worked on together. Troy found it...weird. The old Sharpay would always greet him first. But, he reminded himself, that was the old Sharpay. This is the new Sharpay, who likes someone else.

"Sharpay likes someone!" Gabby suddenly blurted out, which earned a menacing glare from Sharpay and gasps and squeals from the girls.

"GABBY!" The blonde whined a bit, pleading the other girl to be quiet.

"C'mon, Montez. We all know that it's Troy!" Chad rolled his eyes, tang a bite from his pizza.

The brunette shook her head. "Nope! His name is-"

"Gabby! You promised you wouldn't tell them about Cameron!" Sharpay whined.

"Cameron?!" Taylor, Martha, and Kelsi shrieked.

"Who's Cameron? Does he go here?" Jason raised an eyebrow.

"Who cares about Sharpay's stupid guy?! Don't worry Troy. I'll bet that you're WAY too good for her!" Chad slapped his best friend's back. Troy couldn't answer him; he was still in shock. What could he say to Sharpay? 'Congratulations, I hope you guys will be happy together. Be careful.'? No way.

"Zip it, Danforth! Cameron is cool! I'm surprised that you have a girlfriend." Sharpay sneered. The two of them began arguing with each other until the girls calmed them down, mostly Gabby doing the calming and the rest of the girls gushing over Sharpay about Cameron. Troy tried to ignore them, joking and laughing with his friends. However, he heard some bits of the conversation.

"Oh! Cameron's full name is Cameron Bale."

"No, Cameron doesn't live here. He's so far away!"

"Cameron is really sweet. He's so considerate of others!"

"He is so smart! He could ace a test without studying!"

"He's really great at sports! He can play anything!"

Something inside Troy snapped. He snarled in frustration and he slapped his palm on the table, causing the girls to shriek and the guys to jump.

"Sharpay, so this Cameron guy's better than me in every way, right?" The basketball captain growled.

The drama queen stammered. "I-I never said that..."

"He is, isn't he?!" Troy pounded his fist on the table, walking over to Sharpay.

"Troy!" Ryan blocked his twin sister, staring at the captain with sharp green eyes.

"Sorry..." Troy murmured as the bell rang. He grabbed his books and the remainder of his lunch, tossing it in a nearby trash can as he walked to his next class. He didn't get it. Why was he so ad at that Cameron guy? He should be happy. Sharpay's moved on. Troy can finally hang out with Gabby freely. So, why was he so...mad at Cameron?

End of Chapter 2.

I'm so sorry that this chapter sucks and if it's confusing! Should I continue? Whaddya think?


	3. Chapter 3

For weeks and weeks on end, Sharpay never stopped talking about that Cameron guy. And Troy couldn't take it much longer. He just couldn't understand it. Why was he so mad at that Cameron guy? He didn't even know that guy and yet, he's mad at him. One night, the basketball player racked his brain for answers before it hit him. He doesn't love Gabby anymore. He misses the old Sharpay. So much. So freaking much.

At first, he laughed at himself. He, Troy Bolton, missing the drama queen, Sharpay Evans? But soon, his denial turned to anger before he accepted it. He doesn't love Gabriella anymore and he wants the old Sharpay back. How easy it would be if he could just walk up to her and tell her that. But now, this Sharpay is in love with Cameron Bale, who lives millions and millions of miles away from her, but yet, even with the distance between them, that Cameron guy made Sharpay happy, something Troy couldn't do, even though he lived right next to her. Troy regretted always pushing her aside, he regretted stealing her spotlight, he just...regretted not accepting her when he had the chance.

When he woke up the next day, he immediately called a certain smart brunette and broke it off with her. He knew that a breakup through the phone was one of the worst breakups imaginable, but he couldn't stop thinking about a certain blonde. And at that point, he began to notice things about her that he never noticed before.

1\. Sharpay always has gum with her. Whether it's in her purse, her pocket, her mouth, she always has gum with her. He remembered that every show she did, she'd quickly chew on a piece of pink bubblegum, chewing it nervously, as if it was a stress reliever for her.

2\. She's great at sports. He noticed that in basketball, she could make a three-pointer if she actually tried. In golf, she could make a hole in one if she didn't pretended that she didn't know how to play.

3\. She was fiercely protective of Ryan. Even though she treated Ryan as a sidekick, she could beat just about anyone if they made fun of her older brother in any way.

Troy decided that he would learn more of Sharpay later on, that is, if she continued liking that Cameron Bale dude.

An hour later, the boys basketball team captain found himself walking towards a park. This time, he was alone. No Gabby, no Chad, no basketball team, no one. It was one of those rare days that he was alone. As he neared the swings, he found a blonde girl, dressed in nice white blouse, pink skirt, and matching pink heeled boots. Sharpay. As he neared her, he noticed that her eyes were glued on the ground, her body swinging on the swing absentmindedly. He wanted to hug her so badly. Back then, she would have been thrilled, but this is now. He didn't know how she'd react if he hugged her.

"Troy." Her voice shook him out of his thoughts and blue eyes met green eyes. "What are you doing here?"

"A guy needs some time alone." He shrugged, settling down on a swing next to her. "You?"

She nodded. "A girl needs some away time."

They sat in a comforting silence, the swings creaking from years of use. Troy didn't mind it though. As long as he was with Sharpay, he didn't care.

"You know, Troy. I think Venus hates me." East High's drama queen said, out of the blue.

"Venus? Isn't she a goddess or something?" Troy wrinkled his nose, trying to remember.

"Yes, she is the Roman goddess of love and beauty." His heart broke a little by the word 'love' that escaped her lips.

"Well, why do you think that Venus hates you?" He continued, trying to start a conversation.

"Because!" Sharpay said, exasperated. "Because I'm not good enough! Even though I know everything about Cameron, he knows nothing about me! And, he has so many girls who like him too! And, when I liked you..."

Troy's heart nearly skipped a beat. 'What about it when you liked me?' He thought to himself.

"But when I liked you, I wasn't good enough. You like Gabriella. And I can see why. Gabriella's pretty, smart, and nice. I'll never be as good as her."

End!  
Note: Sorry for the LONG update! Anyways, please review and I apologize that it's rushed. But please review! Your reviews will make me update much faster! ;)


	4. Chapter 4

_"But when you liked you, I wasn't good enough. You like Gabriella. I can see why. Gabriella's pretty, smart, and nice. I'll never as good as her."_

Troy was at a lost for words. "Uh-uh...well, I think you're pretty Sharpay. Y-Yeah. A-And you're smart, you always ace French and you're - you're...n-nice?"

To his surprise, Sharpay threw her head back and laughed. He stopped and stared at her in shock. He had never heard Sharpay laugh so...genuinely before. It wasn't fake or forced like her other laughs but light and airy. It even sounded musical, if that was somewhat understandable.

" Oh! Me? Pretty? Ahaha...oh! Smart? Nice?! Oh!" The blonde reduced her laughter when she realized that the brunette next to her wasn't laughing along with her. After a few more giggles, she cleared her throat. "I know that you're trying to make me feel better, Troy. We both know that none of those things are true. But, thank you for trying." She flashed him a small smile and Troy felt the corners of his lips tugging into a smile as well.

For the rest of that morning until the early afternoon, the two teens sat on the swings of the park and just began talking, where Troy learned more things about the so called 'Ice Queen'.

New Fact #1: She looks up to Ms. Darbus.

When he asked her why she looked up to Ms. Darbus, Sharpay lists things off one by one. Ms. Darbus is passionate about acting. Ms. Darbus makes her strive to improve. Ms. Darbus gave up everything to do what she loved most. When Sharpay asks Troy who he looks up to, he rubs his neck, saying that he probably looks up to his dad, who wants him to become a basketball player.

New Fact #2: Sharpay is a strong believer of 'beauty is on the inside'.

As they were talking about who they looked up to, a laugh interrupted them. They turned around to see that a boy was laughing at a girl, who apparently, was confessing her feelings to him. He sneered at her, saying that she was not pretty enough and she was too fat. Clenching her hands, Sharpay shot up from her seat and marched up to the boy, telling him that the girl is beautiful and that he can't tell her that she's ugly and fat when he's fat and ugly as well.

New Fact #3: She doesn't believe in forever love.

"You don't believe in forever love?" Troy asked, raising an eyebrow.

She nodded.

"Why?"

She explains that every relationship that she's ever been in almost ends with her being cheated on by some other girl. The boys' basketball captain notices that she looks down with a grim smile before lifting her head up, changing the subject.

The more they talked, the more Troy learned about Sharpay. And the more he learned about her, the more he wished the day didn't end. The girl tore her emerald green eyes away from his crystal blue ones and at her pink phone for the time. It read 1:55.

"Oh wow. It's 1:55. The morning flew by so fast, huh?" She gripped on the swing's chains and twirled her body so that the chains would wrap around each other, before she twirled around and the helix broke. Sharpay looked so...innocent, so happy. Troy couldn't help but smile.

"Yeah. It did."

She stood up from her seat and smoothed out her pink skirt. He stood up as well. "Well, thank you for talking with me today, Troy. I promised to meet with my grandparents before 2:30. I should go noe. I had fun." With that she flashed him a smile and walked off, hailing a cab. He watched her leave and waved her away, though he was sure she didn't see it.

Later that evening, as he was about to take a shower, his phone chimed. It was Sharpay. He picked up.

"Sharpay?"

"Troy! Oh my God! Troy!" Sharpay sounded frantic and so vulnerable, unlike the cool, suave, Sharpay Troy knew.

"What's wrong? Shar? Shar?!"

End of Chapter 4

Note: I'm so sorry for neglecting this story! There weren't a lot of reviews so I thought that no one liked it and I was about to delete it. Please review! Reviews will give me motivation to update faster!


	5. Chapter 5

"Sharpay?! Shar?! SHARPAY!" Troy yells at his phone. His heart feels like it wants to beat out of his chest, his hands could barely grasp his phone because of his sweaty palms, and he swallows a lump in his throat. He wonders why he's worried about her. Past Troy didn't care about Past Sharpay. Past Troy was a...jerk, whoonly cared about Gabby and the Wildcats. Past him didn't care about how much Past her worked hard to get the lead in the school play. He, along with Gabby, swooped right in on that fateful audition and stole everything that the 'Ice Queen' had worked so hard and long for. He wished he could change back time. He really does. He wants to change back the day of that fateful audition. He wants to go back and tell Sharpay that he can't live without her. But he can't. He's only Troy Bolton, the King of East High. He's only Troy Bolton, a jerk and who wants the old Sharpay Evans back.

"Oh God! Troy! M-My g-grandmother g-got drugged and robbed!" Sharpay nearly screams. The King of East High was dumbfounded. She was joking, right? He hears her laughing and realizes that she must be testing him when he realized that he was wrong. Sharpay's crying.

"Shar, what happened?" He asks, his voice lined with worry.

"My grandmother...S-Some men...c-came o her house...drugged her. A-And when she w-woke up...Everything was gone! She lost everything! I'm just - I'm scared, Troy! I'm worried and..." Troy couldn't understand her after those few lines because Sharpay starts blubbering and crying that he can't make out what she's saying.

"Shar, did she call the police? Sharpay, please listen to me! Call the police and calm down. Don't cry, call the police and they'll tale care of it. Shar...Shar, are you listening to me?" Troy realizes that Sharpay wasn't listening to him. She can hear him but her mind can't process what he's saying. She's wailing at the top of her lungs and Troy wants to close his eyes and cover his ears. It's not because she's too loud, it's because he can't stand hearing her cry. He's only heard her cry once but this is different. He feels defeated and vulnerable, that he's unable to help her. He nearly felt the world come to an end when he heard her phone drop.

"Hello? Sharpay?!" He nearly yells frantically.

He hears the phone being picked up. "Hey, Troy. It's Ryan. Um, Shar can't...talk right now. But, she'll call you later, okay?" And before Troy could answer, the other blonde hanged up the phone. The brunette heard the dial tone and listens to its buzzing for some time. Sharpay's grandmother is robbed and drugged. He wants to tell himself that it's not real, that it only happens in TV shows and action movies, not real life. Then, he realizes that he has to wake up. Life isn't all about winning a tied game with a perfect three-pointer, acing every auditing, or singing in a musical. He punches the floor and as much as his fist hurts, his heart stings more.

Later at about eleven at night, Troy can't sleep and his phone vibrates. He picks it up and notices that Sharpay had just texted him.

 _Sharpay: Hi Troy. I'm sorry about calling you earlier. I was...worried and didn't think straight. I'm sorry to bother you. I'm fine now and thank you for trying to help._

He types back:

 _Troy: It's fine, Sharpay. I don't mind. I hope your grandmother's feeling better. You didn't bother me. If you need help, just call me._

Just call me. She never did call him again.

Note: And, another chapter! Haha, it's earlier than before, huh? Anyways, I apologize if there's anything that seems OOC or anything like that. Please leave a review and again, reviews motivate me to write more so, review!


	6. Chapter 6

The very next day, which was Sunday, Troy came back to the park and lo and behold, there was the so called Ice Queen in all her glory, swinging on the swing. Upon closer inspection, the King of East High noticed that her eyes were glued to the ground beneath her sparkly high heels and the wind tugged at her hair and loose blouse. He decided that she never looked better in his life. He wanted desperately to wrap him in her arms and never let go, but he knew that she was too good for him. If he ever got to live a hundred years, she would still be too good for him.

"Troy..." His blue eyes snapped and saw her glassy emerald eyes looking back at him. She had stood up from the swing and was mere inches away from him.

"Hey, Sharpay. H-How's your grandmother?" He tried to ask casually.

She shrugged slightly, causing a ringlet of her curled hair bounce off her shoulder. "She's...fine. We called the police and they're trying to investigate it, so I'm sure it'll all work out." Sharpay lowered her gaze down to her sparkly high heels and Troy smiled sadly.

"Sharpay, do you know you're trembling right now?" He asked as kindly as he could, trying not to show his misery.

The blonde lifted her head, breathing shakily, noticing that her whole entire body was vibrating. She looked at Troy with the most defeated and heartbreaking look he ever saw, grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and buried her face into his shirt, crying into it. Troy was shocked for a few moments before wrapping his arms around her waist. The brunette rocked back and fort gently, humming a peaceful song. They stayed in that embrace for quite some time but the boys' basketball captain could care less. He didn't want to let go of her ever again. He wished he accepted her hugs before and not now. Not when she's head-over-heels on Cameron Bale. Not when he was a jerk.

After what seemed to be a lifetime, Sharpay lifted her head from Troy's gray shirt, revealing a huge tear stain. She sniffed. "Sorry about that, Troy. I'll buy you a new shirt." She pulled out a twenty dollar bill from her small handbag, only to be stopped by Troy's hand over hers.

"It's nothing, Sharpay. It'll dry up soon. Don't worry about it." He smiled genuinely. Sharpay nodded while sniffling, tucking the bill back in her handbag.

"A-And Troy...about C-Cameron...I-I think that...well..." She kept stuttering before he drew her back into a hug. He didn't want to hear that name ever again in his life. Never in a million years.

"It's okay, Sharapy..." Troy whispered gently, unsure why he was even comforting her about Cameron. After a while, the two broke the hug and walked side-by-side with each other away from the park to the nearby shops. Sharpay began rambling on about the upcoming musical that Ms. Darbus was going to announce and even though he stopped caring about the musical ever since he realized that the blonde needed it more than him, he still nodded, as if to listen to her, although all he was looking was her.

"Oh look, Troy!" The girl squealed excitedly, jabbing her finger at pair of black, tap shoes through a store's window. Troy looked at the shoes curiously. It wasn't exactly the prettiest pair of shoes, well in short, it was rather plain, compared to Sharpay's sparkly shoes.

"Uh...it's nice..." Troy commented.

She nodded. "It is, isn't? But, they seem rather plain and they hurt a lot."

He furrowed his eyebrows. "Well, then why do you like them?"

"I like the way they sound. You know, they make that tapping sound. Tap tap." Sharpay beamed as she began walking off.

Troy could only raise and eyebrow and tried to hold back a smirk. She was pretty weird, all right. But, if being weird makes her happy, he doesn't care.

End.

Note: Sorry for the LONG wait! Thank you for being patient! It's almost done, I promise! Please review!


	7. Chapter 7

The next day is Monday and of course, that means going to school. Troy sees Sharpay around the hallways and in between periods, but doesn't have a chance to talk to her. Taylor and the rest of the girls-minus Sharpay- were quite upset at Troy for breaking up with Gabby for no apparent reason, and as bad as he feels for breaking it off with Gabriella, the girl who he had the longest relationship with, he knows that it wouldn't be fair for her. Gabriella doesn't have his heart anymore; Sharpay does. It doesn't seem right and he knows it. But the King of East High is grateful for the girls for caring so much for the smart brunette, but wishes that they'd pay attention to the Ice Queen as well.

As the last bell rang, dismissing the students, Ms. Darbus calls out, "Remember, auditions for the musical is today!". Troy stood still for a moment, frozen. The musical. He considers auditioning for a part when he realizes something. Sharpay and Ryan. Those two have been working so hard for each school musical for so long. It wouldn't be fair of him to just swoop in and take that away from them. That would be like someone stealing the title of captain away from him. He wouldn't like that. And neither would the Evans twins. As he scooped up his books and backpack to leave, he heard Ms. Darbus ask, "Sharpay? Are you going to audition for the female lead?"

"No, Ms. Darbus. I'm not." He could barely hear her, since she was whispering.

"What?!" The teacher sounded mortified. "Why ever not?"

"Ryan's auditioning with Gabriella, and he's the only person who would ever audition with me. And without Ryan, I can't audit-"

"I'm auditioning with Sharpay!" He blurted out. The two females stared at him in shock. Sharpay's emerald eyes looked at him with curiosity, doubtful.

"I-I appreciate your offer, Troy, but, I only ever work with Ryan, since I know he won't leave me." The blonde whispered the last part, though Troy heard her.

He walked closer to her. "I won't leave you, I promise." She looked up at him, insecurity slowly Turing into confidence as she smiled firmly at him and he swore he saw heaven when he saw her dimples. Looking at the drama teacher, he replied once again, "We're auditioning, together."

The pair took a seat in the middle as they watch each pair perform, the anxiety growing. As Ryan and Gabriella took to the stage, Sharpay suddenly gasped out, "Troy. I just realized. I didn't memorize the song!"

Troy let out a small laugh. "I don't even bother to memorize the song! Don't worry, Darbus has the script on Kelsi's piano."

The blonde still pouted. "But still! I-I don't want to lose. Not again." She whispered quietly, but he still heard her.

Cupping a hand under her chin, he forced her to make eye contact. "Listen, Shar. I don't care if we get the parts or not. Let's just get up there and have fun, if we get it or not." As the drama teacher called out their names, Troy offered her a hand, to which she accepted. The two walked up on stage, hand in hand, and sang their hearts out. As the song ended, Ms. Darbus could only purse her lips together and remark, "Well, this will be difficult."

The very next day, the results were posted. It was a tie between Ryan and Gabriella and Troy and Sharpay. The two pairs would audition once again two months later, due to finals and Ms. Darbus' changing the musical a bit.

The day after finals were over, Troy found Sharpay on the swings once again, this time, she was looking heavenward, a small smile on her face.

"Hey, Shar." He greeted as he settled on a swing next to her.

"Hi, Troy." She smiled brightly, swinging gently back and forth. "How are you?"

He pauses a minute. How is he? "Good, I guess. You?"

The blonde taps her chin thoughtfully. "Hmm, well, I don't exactly know. Do you remember when I told you about how I think that Venus must have hated me?"

Boy, does he? The brunette nodded, "Yeah, why?"

"Well, I think that Venus is telling me to stop liking Cameron Bale now." Troy feels bubbly inside. He's happy. He's nervous. Why?

"Why's that, Sharpay? You've been liking Cameron for some time."

She presses her lips together and remarks, "That is true. I really do like Cameron." The brunette feels all the excitement drain out of him.

"Um, Shar? You're confusing me."

The blonde laughed slightly. "Well, I do like him, but I don't love him. It's inconceivable. After all..."

Troy sees her lips moving and time stops.

What?

He's laughing inside, mentally.

This isn't good. Laughing is one of the first signs of shock.

End of Chapter.

A/N: That cliffhanger, though! Anyways, please leave a review! I'm sorry for not updating much! About one more chapter and this story will be over. I'm a bit sad to end this story, but I'm planning to do a small 'Troypay Theme Challenge' soon. Would you like a Troypay Theme Challenge? Please comment if you do!


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: So...here we are. The last chapter of 'Aspiration'. I just feel so sad that I'm going to have to end this story, though I've neglected it one too many times, but finally ending it just hurts. So, I just want to say thank you for all of you who reviewed this story, especially malasha33, guests jealoustroy, Jes, and Guest. You all made me want to finish this story, so I'm so grateful for you all. And before this author's note gets any longer, here's the last chapter of 'Aspiration'!

 **Chapter 8**

 _"Well, I do like him, but I don't love him. It's inconceivable. After all..."_

 _Troy sees her lips moving and time stops._

 _What?_

 _He's laughing inside, mentally._

 _This isn't good. Laughing is one of the first signs of shock._

"...Cameron's just a TV show character. Well, technically, he's a character from a drama series."

Troy's dumbfounded, he's just...speechless. All this time, he was jealous of a character from a drama series. It's so ridiculous, so stupid. "So...all the things you said..." His voice trails off and he's already making up conclusions inside his mind.n

"Everything I said about Cameron is true. He has blue eyes. He has brown hair. He lives with his troubled, alcoholic father. His parents are divorced. I wasn't lying or anything, Troy! He's pretty cute, but yet, he makes so many fans frustrat-"

The boys' basketball captain grabbed the blonde's shoulder and forced her to make eye contact with him. "I've been jealous of a guy who didn't exist the whole time?!"

"Troy! Cameron's not a guy who didn't exist-wait. Troy, you just said that you were...jealous."

A part of him was telling him to shut up and play it cool as if it never happened, but another another part of him told him to go for it. He's had feelings for her ever since that Cameron Bale came along. He knew he couldn't take it much longer of he didn't confess soon, so he went for it.

Taking a deep breath, he mustered out, "When I heard Taylor and Gabriella talking about you liking someone else, I thought that I was okay with it. But then, you kept on taking about that...Cameron and I was so uncomfortable. I was... I was jealous, okay? I didn't like it when you were talking about someone else. I like you, Sharpay. I think you're pretty, talented, amazing...it just took me too long to realize it. I liked Gabby before but I don't now. I like you, Shar-wait, Shar, are you crying?!"

And sure enough Sharpay had bursted into tears, her hands covering her eyes. Troy became worried and immediately rushed to her side, trying to hug her. "Hey, Shar? W-Why are you-"

"Four years..." He heard her murmur. "It took you four years..." The blonde looked up from her hands and there, through her glassy blue eyes, the brunette saw the biggest smile. "Troy Bolton, you were jealous? I had to deal with that for four years. Four years! You suffered? I had to see you with Montez for three years! Why am I even happy? You just said that you only liked me because I liked another guy..."

Troy was grinning from ear to ear. Sharpay still likes him. "I'm sorry. If you didn't already know, I broke up with Gabriella two months ago. I'll make it up with you." The blonde stared at him for a moment before grabbing his shirt, burying her face in his chest as her arms wrapped around his waist. He smiled and wrapped his arms around her waist as well.

"You know, Troy. I paid more attention to Cameron because I wanted to stop liking you. I don't think I have to look at him anymore."

Troy's pride soared that day.

•

The next day, when he tells his friends that he's dating Sharpay, he's given weird looks by everyone but Gabriella and Ryan, who congratulate them.

"Oh, so that's why you broke up with me!" Gabby realized, as soon as she releases her hugs from the couple.

Troy rubbed his neck. "Yeah, sorry about that, Gabs."

The smartest girl in school waved it off. "It's fine, Troy. Besides, I kinda wanted to break it up, too, but looks like you did it first." She blushed bashfully, as Ryan reached for her hand and held it.

Sharpay gasped. "Ryan Evans! You're dating Gabriella Montez and you didn't tell me?!"

Ryan rolled his eyes. "C'mon, 'Pay! You didn't mention anything about Troy! When are you guys gonna get married?"

"Married?!" The couple gaped, blushing.

"Yo, Troy. I don't think you should marry...Evans there." Chad frowned.

"Oh, can it, Danforth!" Troy's girlfriend snapped as he watched his best friend and girlfriend bicker. He laughed slightly, looping his arm around her waist. He knows they're too young now, but he has a feeling he'll be with her lo her than Gabby.

•

Ten years later, the two twenty-seven year-olds are married and on a cruise ship heading to their honeymoon in Paris, courtesy of Troy's parents- in-laws. The two battled a log distance relationship in college, she being in Albuquerque and he in UC Berkeley, but they managed. On breaks, they visited each other and continued going strong, whereas his relationship with Gabby would be restarted for almost every obstacle.

Sharpay Bolton yawned as she flopped on their bed, still wearing her pink reception dress as Troy Bolton undid his tie.

"Hey, 'Pay. Remember when we were in high school and you were obsessed with that one guy?"

"You mean you, or Cameron Bale?"

"Yeah, Cameron. You know, because of him, I've gone through aspiration."

She crinkled her nose. "He made you go through what?"

Troy had to laugh. "He made me go through aspiration, it's a French word, an emotion. If it was for him, I wouldn't have realized I love you."

Sharpay sighed. "Troy, this isn't exactly what I want to hear now."

"I know, it's just...when you liked him, I was scared of losing you. Aspiration's when you start missing something or someone you've neglected and you want them back. I was so scared that I was going to lose your love for me"

The blonde grabbed her husband guys his collar and broke into a smile that he swore he saw heaven. "I've loved you for fourteen years and you think someone like him would take me away from you?"

Troy laughed. "I love you too, Shar."

And he knows he won't lose her.

Not this time.

Not ever.

 **End of Story**

Just to clear some things up, aspiration is a French word for jealousy and I'm so sorry for such a bad ending! I might start the Troypay Theme Challenge, but there's not a lot of people wanting it, so I'm not sure yet. Also, Cameron Bale is a character character from Summerland, and the actor for Cameron is Zac Efron! So, technically, Sharpay was just crushing on Troy! Lol, please don't kill me. Please review!


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